Category Archives: Practicing Improvisation

Turning Adversity Into Opportunity

One of the things I’ve learned in my daily saxophone practice is to welcome the adversity of unwanted results to my practice efforts.

Whereas before this would lead to frustration (and even despair), now it brings me to a place of quiet curiosity, discernment and experimentation.

To be clear, I very much enjoy the days where everything seems to be going just right. Not only does it gives me the satisfactory sense of being in a state of “flow” with my efforts, but it also affirms that I’m on the right track with my practice strategies and intentions.

But when it’s “one of those days” where even the simplest things start to unravel, I immediately transition into my “why?” mode:

“Why is this always an easy thing for me, but today it is not?”

The answer to this question is always available, as long as I continue to explore and ask further questions.

Whenever things are not going as well as they normally do, it will always come down to one thing: the quality of my attention moment to moment as I practice.

Sometimes this quality of attention issue is more “global” in nature. For example, maybe I’m severely lacking in sleep, or perhaps distracted by some emotional trauma I’ve experienced earlier in the day.

In either of these cases, I practice self-kindness, and determine whether there is a way I can regroup and redirect my efforts in a constructive way to continue; or if I can’t, to simply stop the session and use the remainder of my allotted practice time to give myself more of what I really need (like a nap, or some quiet, compassion-based meditation).

But more often than not, my quality of attention issues are immediately changeable. So if something seems unusually difficult for me that day, I simply observe my thinking, and ask myself questions:

“Where/how am I placing my attention?”

“Am I hyper-aware of what I’m doing, (never a good thing), or am I simply not integrating my awareness as intentionally as I normally do?”

“How is my attention impacting my ‘use’? (the quality of what I’m doing in my body and with my senses)

“Am I focusing too much on the expected result, at the expense of not paying enough attention the quality of my process as I pursue the result?”

“Am I using awareness to discern what I’m actually doing with myself as I practice this particular thing, or am I self-consciously judging the quality of my efforts before I can arrive at that discernment?”

And so on. (One of the most valuable skills gained from studying the Alexander Technique is in learning to constructively apply these “attentional” skills.)

I just keep asking questions, going from the general to the more specific (for example, “How am I perceiving pulse/rhythm today?”), until the answer reveals itself to me. I always find the answer, as long as I stay curious and keep asking.

There are two big benefits from bringing this attitude and commitment into my daily practice:

One, in learning that I can find improvement in even the most difficult of days, I develop a continuing, empowering sense of self-efficacy.

Two, my daily practice sessions tend to be more consistent and productive than ever before.

It’s a win/win situation.

I think it was basketball legend Michael Jordan who said something like:

I never lose. Either I win, or I learn something.

And so it can be in your daily practice sessions. So enjoy the good days, those days where you feel unstoppable in your musical skills and powers. Let them affirm, inspire and energize you.

But I encourage you to also welcome the “bad” days. Because if you are willing to examine and readjust the direction and quality of your attention as you practice, there really are no “bad” days.

A Fun (And Challenging!) Way To Improve Your Time And Expand Your Rhythmic Imagination

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Pulse, rhythm, meter and feel. These are the essential components of time that musicians utilize to create music.

I’ve been nearly obsessed with exploring and better understanding how our perception of time impacts our music (including going deep into the science of how our brains perceive time). Even our most basic movement skills are coordinated through our sense of time.

Without time, there is no coordinated movement. None. And without coordinated movement, there is no music.

In every practice session I’m working on things that challenge and expand my sense of time. Again: pulse, rhythm, meter and feel. (I’ve even composed two eBooks with exercises in polymeter and multiple time subdivisions that document some of my explorations.)

One of the “staples” of my work with time is using multiple, simultaneous pulses; i.e., working with more than one tempo at a time (no pun intended). I usually do this either with metronomes and/or with drum grooves (I really like the Smartphone app Drum Genius for this!)

I’ve been working this way for several years now, and I continue to reap wonderful benefits from my efforts. If you haven’t practiced with multiple time sources, I highly recommend that you do so. Here’s why:

The three most palpable skills that you will cultivate from practicing with multiple tempos are:

1 Improved “precision” in your perception of pulse (steadier, more reliable sense of time)

2 Improved flexibility and adaptability in changing tempos (finding the “groove” more immediately and solidly; not getting “stuck” in certain tempo ranges)

3 The ability to actively and accurately “imagine” tempos nested within tempos (this is especially useful for improvising musicians!)

As you work this way you will also find that your technique becomes cleaner and more precise as well (though without losing the musical flexibility that is so important to expressive and dynamic playing).

Here’s a simple way to get started:

Begin by using two metronomes that have slightly different sounding clicks (this makes it easier for you to perceive of and integrate the two pulses).

Set one metronome at half notes, around 60 bpm. Set the second metronome at 2/3 the tempo of the first. So in this case, half notes at 40 bpm.

Find a simple scale or melodic pattern to practice, composed of quarters and/or eighth notes (again something simple). Start at the faster tempo and play the pattern a few times to embody the tempo as you “notice” the click of the slower metronome.

At a certain point, jump over to the slower metronome and play the same pattern at the slower tempo. Aim for embodying the new tempo as soon as possible. Once you feel that you’ve locked in the new tempo, switch back to the original tempo, and so on, moving back and forth between tempos.

Whichever tempo you are in, see that you are “hearing” (but not necessarily “listening to” the other metronome clicks).

The aim here at first is not so much being able to conceive of both tempos simultaneously, but rather that you can easily and readily switch between tempos.

Once you’re comfortable with all these activities, add another challenge. Perhaps it is to play a particular piece (etude, solo transcription, etc.) as you move back and forth between tempos. Or you can also add more rythmic complexity the original scale pattern you started with, using triplets, quintuplets, syncopation, etc.

If you’re an improviser, the next challenge could be improvising with the two metronomes. First, just improvise over a mode, scale, or simple riff, something devoid of a specific time/harmonic form. Once you feel solid doing that, improvise over a short, familiar harmonic form (maybe the blues?) And so on, again, adjusting the time/harmonic form to fit the new tempo.

When you get to the point where you’re able to function well in these two tempos, decrease the differences in time between the two metronomes. Maybe set one at half note at 60 and the other at half note at 45. You can continue to lessen the tempo differences until you get both metronomes at nearly similar tempos (say 60 bpm at one and 55 bpm at the other).

At whatever two tempos you’re working with, take some time to sit and listen (without playing) to how the two tempos eventually converge and make a singular, simultaneous click. Try to conceive of and anticipate this occurrence. Find the pattern.

And of course, you can also play around with different drum loops, perhaps exploring not only multiple times, but multiple feels and metered subdivision. For example I like working with the metronome clicking on half notes, while I add a drum groove in 4/4 that is subdivided into four, 3/4 patterns (12 beats over three measures).

If you’re truly brave and adventurous, you can add a third (or more?) time source.

If you continue to work this way, you will learn (as I have) to actually “hear and imagine” more than one tempo and subdivision simultaneously. As I’ve stated above this will not only make you a “stronger” musician (better reader, time keeper, etc.), but will open up amazing roads as an improviser, allowing you to create an abundance of rhythmic tension and release.

So give it a try. Have fun with it! Explore, learn. And grow as you do so!

New E-book: Encyclopedia of Triad Pairs

The Value Of Having (But Not Always Following) A Daily Practice Plan

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“If you make a mistake, you might want to play that…”

-Miles Davis

I’ve been teaching the Alexander Technique since 2009 at AMDA College of the Performing Arts in Los Angeles.

For every class that I teach, I always arrive with a fairly well detailed lesson plan. In my 10 years of teaching I’ve never once stuck to my plan.

Yet I still continue to formulate a plan and bring it with me to every single class.

And every day for the past many years (too many for me to remember), I start each of my daily saxophone practice sessions with a fairly well detailed practice plan. In all these years of practicing, I’ve never once stuck to my plan.

Yet I still continue to formulate a plan and bring it with me into the practice room.

Why (you might ask) would I do this? Why would I expend time on something that, ultimately, I won’t use?

Well, the truth of the matter is that I always use my plans.

Just because I don’t stick to them doesn’t mean they’re not of great value to me, both in teaching and in learning.

So let’s go to the more fundamental questions here:

1. Why make a plan in the first place?

2. Why don’t I adhere to my plan?

Why make a plan in the first place?

Because making a plan clarifies and details my intentions. These intentions are drawn from what it is that I’d like to accomplish/address. This is always based upon my experiences from the pervious session (whether in the classroom or practice room).

So I begin each session without ambiguity, without hesitation. I immediately start my work efficiently and purposefully. Minimal “wasted” time/energy, optimal engagement/presence.

All good, yes? So then…

Why don’t I adhere to my plan?

In a word: flexibility. As important as my intentions are, I must remain ever vigilant to what is actually needed in the present moment. And that requires an ability to be open to the possibilities of altering my previously intended course of action.

This, to be sure, involves balancing on a fine line. It means staying committed to doing the thing that is most helpful, whether this falls inside or outside of my plan.

It means staying always mindful of my plan (my experience-based intentions), but being willing to let go of some (or all!) of it, too. It means, sometimes, that I come up with an entirely new course of action right there in the moment.

If you’re an improvising musician, you probably already see this attitude as being analogous to improvising music. There is form, perhaps even some kind of a planned sequence of events.

But often, the real magic happens when we deviate from the plan.

Yet this deviation could never occur without a plan in the first place. (I actually think the reason jazz musicians enjoy improvising over standard songs, in part, is to have a “plan to push against”.)

So when you practice do you have a plan? If so, what is it based upon? Are you flexible with it? If not, why not?

And if you don’t have a daily plan when you practice, consider changing that habit. You can always alter (or even abandon) the plan. But you will start each practice session with clarity, curiosity and accountability. You will work toward your goals in a conscious and onstructive manner, always building collectively from previous experience.

Work toward making your plan as detailed as is most optimal for you. Too much detail (or too many tasks)? Simplify. Prioritize and let the things go that seem least essential. What seems to work? What doesn’t?

Not enough detail? Start filling in some blanks. Add more tasks. Ask more questions:

“What do I want? What do I need to work on to get that? What is standing in my way right now?” What can I let go of?”

Take time to formulate and write out tomorrow’s plan at the end of today’s practice session.

Get to know yourself and your music ever more intimately. And enjoy the process!

New Jazz Etude: 5/8 Combined With 3/4 Over ii-V7-I in 4/4

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Here’s a way to use familiar sounding tonal colors and tensions in surprising new ways. By simply organizing the melodic shapes to imply various odd metered subdivisions, you can create lots if interesting rhythmic tension.

Take a look at the example above. In the first measure, I’m using an F major pentatonic scale that is ascending in two, five-note subdivisions: F-D-C-A-G; then moving up to D and ascending again: D-C-A-G-F. As you can see, these two shapes combined “go over the bar line” into the second measure. By virtue of the contour of these two pentatonic patterns, I’ve implied a subdivision of 5/8. (I’ve placed accents to mark the subdivisions, but even without them, the 5/8 feeling is clearly there when you play it.)

In the next measure, I simply ascend on the diminished scale (D-E-F-G-Ab-Bb). This ascending pattern clearly implies a 3/4 subdivision, especially as it is contrsted to the previous 5/8 subdivisions. I use the Bb of the diminished scale (functioning as the #9 of the G7 chord) to resolve to the B natural (the 7th) of the Cmaj7 chord. The line then returns to the 5/8 subdivisions, as I use the notes of the Cmaj7 chord to create a contour to imply this subdivision. In the fourth measure, I place an accent over the “D” (the 9th of the Cmaj7 chord), then add a quarter rest, followed by a quarter note (“A”). This has a net effect of both implying a 3/4 subdivision, as well as providing a “pickup” note to connect the line into the fifth measure, where the original line begins in the new key (F major).

Most definitely practice this with a metronome. Explore setting the clicks on beats one and three; two and four; beat two only; beat four only. This will give you a chance to really feel the “lopsided-ness” of the odd-metered subdivisions in relation to your imagination of the four-measure, 4/4 form that houses the ii-V7-I progression. Also, practice this with both a “straight” eighth note feel, and a swing feel. If you’d like to further explore the use of implied odd-meters over 4/4, please consider my e-book, Essential Polymeter Studies in 4/4 for the Improvising Musician. And if you’d like to discover some new ways to approach the ii-V7-I chord progression, please consider another of my e-books, ii-V7-I: 40 Creative Concepts for the Modern Improviser. For a free, downloadable pdf of this etude, click the link below:

https://billplakemusic.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/58-Combined-with-34-Over-ii-V7-I-in-44-1.pdf